Trestle



C. J. SAMPLE July 28, 1931.

TRESTLE Filed March ,28, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR BY 50mph.

ORNE

C. J. SAMPLE July 28, 1931.

IRESTLE iled March 28, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR2 BY fJa/rz Z6.

RNEY.

Fig. 1 is an outer end view of the trestle sections with the supporting legs Patented July 28, 1931 PATENT ()FFifih;

CLARENCE J. SAMPLE, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI TRESTLE Application filed March 28, 1930. Serial No. 439,825.

My invention relates to a separable trestle adapted to be .used by plasterers, carpenters, masons :and other workmen.

The object of my invention is to provide 51a trestle so constructed that itmay be packed and transported in parts, and put together I for useby skilled or unskilled persons.

Further objects of the invention are to improvethe manufacture of trestles in the i 10 particulars of durability, ease of construction, convenience of handling when transporting same from one place to another,

cheapness in cost of manufacture, ease of assembling and knocking downof structure,

simplicity and security of bracing and locking members.

A still further object of the invention resides in novel means for securely holding the upper ends of the supporting legs of the trestle in socket members by wedge pressure, regardless of whether the legs are of single piecescarefully selected to properly fit into the sockets or selected from a single stray piece ofwood, or from pieces lami- 951 Inated and even of different lengths.

A still further object of the invention resides in means for loosening the wedge grlp against the upper end of the supporting le s.

39 lVith the above and'other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel features of construction, arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter more fully described and finally pointedout in the claims hereto appended.

Referring to'the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, wherein like characters of reference denote similar partsthroughout the several views:

one of applied thereto. s

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of a trestle made in accordance with my invention. Fig. 8 is a top 'planview of the trestle.

Fig. a is a view partly/in side elevation and partly in sectional elevation of one of the trestle sections. I

Fig' 5- is adetail in side elevation with 50 portions broken away showing the wedge mechanism for locking the upper ends of the supporting legs in their respective sockets.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of one of the supporting legs, showing a portion of one of the brace members and its locking member.

'or connected together by two cross girths designated 2 disposed side by side and overlapping each other whereby the two pairs of legs are offset or set out of alignment. The two ,girths are supported by means of a pair of like S-shaped suitable hanger. members 3, one of which is secured to each girth by means of a suitable fastening device 4 passing through each hanger member and entering its respective girth, to prevent the hanger members being lost when the two trestle sections are disconnected andseparated.

The legs 1 are made of single pieces of wood of the desired dimensions, but if they are not accessible, two or more pieces of wood designated 1 and 1 may be laminated to provide the legs for the trestle, as shown in. Fig. 7.

-Each girth member 2 is provided near one endand upon opposite side faces with a suitable preferably metallic socket member 5 having the wings 6 through which suitable fastening devices 7 pass and enter the girths for securing the sockets in position uponopposite sides of each girth member.

a solid footing for the trestle and does not require that theupper side faces of the legs 7 end bent at a suitable angle to the remainder of the member so as to liessubstantially parallel with the sides of the girth member when applied thereto to permit the inner ends of thebrace members to lay one upon the top of the other under the girth member.

Each girth'member is provided with a suitable depending eye shaped hanger member13 the lower cross piece 1 1 of which'is adapted to be received ina notch 15 in the sidewalls of each angle iron brace member 12 for supporting the overlapped innerends of the brace members.

The rear end of each brace member 12 has a section of its top wall flattened out to lie in alignment with the outer side walls thereof which forms a shoulder 16 for each brace member adapted for engagement with the inner side face of each leg 1 to prevent rear ward longitudinal displacement of the brace 'member aft-er it is supported by the depending hanger 13.

A suitable fiat tie and locking member 17 i is employed with each pair of brace members .12 and'is adapted to engage the outer side faces of each pair oflegs ll The tie member is provided with a right angularly disposed wall section extending from the upper edge of the tie member which is adapted to be disposed between and engage the inneror opposed faces of each pair of legs at one end of the girth members, as will be apparent from Figs. 1 and 7. The tie members 17 are each provided upon their lower edges near the ends thereof with a pair of notches 18 adapted to engage in the notches 19 in the upper edges of the flat end sections of the back pair of brace members for detachably locking the tie members with p the outer ends of the brace members to provide arigid brace system for the trestle and to securely hold each pair of legs from any possible spreading movement after the brace members and tie members therefor have been 7 applied to each trestle section.

The above arrangement permits of easy and'quick assembly of each trestle section and permits of itbeing readily knocked down or separated for transportation and storage. V 7

It will be readily apparent that the bracing members can be readily removed by merely lifting the tie member from engage' ment with the ends of the bracing members which allows them to be free for removal from the hanger member.

The means for securely holding the outer faces of each pair of legs in contact with the slanting walls of their respective socket members and to assist in preventing movement of the lower ends of the legs toward each other comprises a U-shaped wedge member 20 for each girth which spans the lower face of the girth with its legs 21 directed upwardly into the sockets adjacent the side faces of the girth. V Thelegs 21 of the U-shaped member are preferably converging toward their free ends'so that each socket members carried by the girths. The

wedge member is held in position with relation to the lever by means of a bolt 20 carried by the girth and which passes through a slotted opening 24; in the lever and, a slotted opening in the U-shaped wedge member, which bolt is provided with an adjusting nut25 which can be loosened so that the lever can be lowered from one end to retract the wedge member from between the legs and the side faces of the girth when it is desired to remove'the legs from the socket by loosening the frictional contact of the arms of the wed e member with the le s 7 which they engage. Whenever the legs are in position in their respective sockets the nut is tightened to draw the wedge members into their extreme uppermost wedge position so that there will be no play of the leg within the socket. The slotted opening in the cross, piece 26 of the wedge members permits the wedge members to move laterally of the of the braces over the hanger depending from each girth, then applying the tie memher to the outer ends of the bracing members. When inserting the legs into the sockets, the wedge members will be moved up wardly thereby to provide means to prevent the legs from moving toward each other at their lower ends. After the legs have been inserted into the sockets, the nut on the bolt which passes through the wedge member is tightened to prevent the wedge members from accidentally dropping. When it is desired to disassemble the trestle, the-nut is loosenedythe lever is pulled down at one end Which loosens the wedge member and from the ends of the brace member. I

the tie member has been removed, the brace.

the legs are then free to be removed from the sockets after'the tie member is detached After scribed invention will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art to which it appertains.

From the foregoing description, it is evident that a simple device for this purpose has been disclosed, but it is to be understood that I do not desire to restrict, or limit myself to the very details of the construction shown and described, which is merely illustrative, it being obvious that changes, not involving the exercise of invention, may be made without conflicting or departing from the spirit of the invention within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a trestle structure of a pair of lik trestle sections, each section comprising a girth, a pair of sockets carried by each girth, detachable legs extending upwardly into said sockets, a pair of detachable braces directed from each pair of legs to a point under each girth, means for supporting the inner ends of said braces, means for detachably connecting the outer ends of said braces for locking them in position, wedge means adapted for engagement with each pair of legs and means for loosening the wedge connection when the legs are to be removed from their respective sockets.

2. In a trestle structure, a pair of girths disposed side by side, S-shaped hangers for connectingsaidgirths, a pair of legs for each girth, means carried by each girth for receiving the upper end of each leg, a brac ing member engaging each leg, means for detachably supporting the inner end of each bracing member under the girth interi'nediate the ends of the girth and means engaging the legs and detachably connecting the outer ends of each brace member and drawing the outer ends of the brace members into con movement of the legs.

3. In a trestle structure, a pair of girths' disposed side by side, S-shaped hangers for connecting said girths, a pair of legs for each girth, means carried on opposite sides of each girth to form opposed sockets to receive the upper ends of said legs, a bracing member engaging each leg, means for detachably supporting the inner end of each bracing member under the girth'intermediate the ends of the girth, means engaging the legs and detachably connecting the outer ends of each brace member anddrawing the outer ends of the brace members into contact with the legs to prevent spreading movement of the legs, U-shaped wedge members carried by each girth the arms of which are adapted to enter the aforesaid sockets for engagement with the inner faces of the legs and means for releasing the arms of said wedge members from tight frictional contact with the inner faces of said legs.

4. In a trestle composed of two like trestle sections, each trestle section comprising a girth, a pair of opposed sockets carried by the girth, legs having their upper ends receivable in said sockets, a pair of brace members, means for deachably supporting the inner ends of said brace members below the girth intermediate the ends of the girth, shoulders formed on said brace members near their outer ends adapted to engage the inner side faces of the legs, a tie member detachably connecting the outer ends of said brace members, a U-shaped wedge memher the arms of which extend upwardly into the opposed sockets and adapted to engage the inner faces of the legs and a pivotally supported lever for retracting the wedge ember arms from tight frictional contact with the inner faces of the legs.

5. In a separable trestle, a pair of girth members adapted to be positioned side by side, a hanger member carried by each girth for supporting the other girth in parallel relation and permitting of longitudinal .adjustment'thereof relative to each other, a

pair of socket members carried by opposite faces of'each girth near the outlier ends thereof, a leg for each socket member, the upper end of which is receivable in its respective socket, a pair of brace members for each end of the assembled trestle, a hanger carried by each girth for supporting the inner ends of each pair of brace members, a detachable tie member connecting the outer ends of each brace member, a shoulder formed on each brace member for contact with the legs which the brace member engages, shoulders formed on the tie member for engagement with the inner faces of two opposed legs which the tie member is adapted to engage, a U-shaped wedge member carried by each girth the arms of which are adapted to extend upwardly into the opposed sockets at the outer ends of each girth, a lever hingedly supported at one end to each girth between the opposed socket members thereof, a bolt carried by each CLARENCE J. SAMPLE. 

